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Oh the import side of things i have done a bit of it in the past and recently so any advice i can help with feel free to ask, for a real bargain u need to buy at auction, sounds scary to many but these guys say exactly whats in the tin on the auction sheets so it is in my opinion a good road to go down

I’ve filled mine up twice since the lockdown and covered some amazing mileage, the battery was a bit flat the other day but a quick charge sorted things out so it now starts on the button. I also did all the service maintenance, cleaned it and checked all the tyre pressures. I also ran it through all the height positions. The grass hasn’t looked this good for years. 😀

Our time will come!

I did a quick test today to make sure my caliper slide pins were running freely. If you follow this quick guide there's no need for any stripping of the brakes as long as you don't find one that's seized. You only need to remove each wheel. All you'll need is a jack, obviously, and a pry bar or long flat bladed screwdriver and or, a clamp. Use the pry bar, screwdriver or clamp to compress the brake caliper until it moves toward the offside of the hub, or toward you, then, if the pins are running freely you'll be able to grab the caliper and check that it's moving freely.

The current tank of fuel is 8 or maybe even 10 weeks old, I really can't remember now and all it's done in that time is a few shopping trips - 38.2 miles, averaging 18.8 mpg according to the on board system. 😭 4.3l V8s weren't really designed as shopping cars. Shame we're not allowed to go anywhere more interetsing.

Hi guys, picked up my 2011 60 rx450h 106k miles today, very pleased with it and a lovely drive. one question that’s bugging me, in the settings menu the sub heading vehicle customisation is missing. Does anyone know why this is and how to add it? thanks

Hope you like it dude. It smells ace and does the job loads better than a lot of others on light coloured cars. I shelled out for some swissvax best of show a while back and while it is undoubtedly amazing on darker cars, on a light car it does not have the same shine as light fantastic. Nowhere near. Only downside to light fantastic is that it does not last that well, but the two coats of collinite sorts that out, that stuff gives you at least 3 months and the light fantastic gives you the super deep and glossy top coat. 😎😎 You can wash and quik detail as required to keep it looking good inbetween reapplications.

Cancellation terms and conditions should be clearly stated within your insurance documents and do vary between companies. Section 11 suggests you will have to continue with your monthly payments and they will refund the unused period pro rata. https://www.lloydsbank.com/assets/media/pdfs/insurance/car/comprehensive-policy-document.pdf

No, absolutely not. That's what it's for. Here's what Motoreasy says about GAP insurance on finance-purchased cars. "If you bought on finance: Due to depreciation your insurer payout will be less than you owe the finance company - leaving you to pay the difference. GAP insurance covers most early on, clearing any finance you owe in full." So if someone is buying on finance, it's more likely that it will cause them a financial problem if an accident means they owe the finance company more than they can afford to pay. GAP insurance gives the reassurance that this won't happen. By contrast, cash buyers are paying up front - they won't have to find this extra money if the worst happens. And if you're a cash buyer you're effectively signing up for the depreciation that everyone knows will start to whittle away at the resale value of their purchase the moment they drive away from the dealer. Now, the GAP insurance supplier says, "Pay us a lump sum up front and if you have an accident, we'll pay you for the depreciation you've already suffered." Only the individual can judge whether this is good value. How much is the lump sum? How often do you have accidents? Alternatively, you can say, "I know I'm signing up for depreciation. In the real world you can't expect to avoid this." The GAP insurance looks tempting but I must have an accident for it to pay out. If I don't have an accident, I'll have paid the lump sum, plus the depreciation and got nothing back in return. Whereas if I don't take out the insurance, I'll just have paid the depreciation, which was already covered anyway on day one by the cash purchase. So it's up to the individual. It seems to me that GAP insurance could be useful for buying on finance. But if you're paying cash, is it worth gambling on the perhaps remote possibility that you might have depreciation paid back?

Lol its messing with everyone. I've just paid the road tax for my RCF, that definitely messes with ones head!

Dear All, Many thanks for your comments on my refurbish dilemma. I have attached before and after pics and have the following observations: - 1. The refurb unit is in Dumbarton, I decided on 'light anthracite' 2. They did all 4 wheels by 5.00pm for £180, only problem was they did not do the inserts and they reason given is that they have been sued in the past as the refurb process can damage the caps. Had they told me this before I decided on the 'light anthracite' I would probably have went for silver, but hey ho I think you need to be looking for the difference to really spot it, and if it still bugs me in a week or so's time I'll look at painting them myself..... In the before and after pics I have shown the worst wheel, the whitish marks on the rims of the after pics are the lubricant stuff they put on when putting the tyres back onto the rims. Please comment, if you don't mind.

Or now!

Hi Stuart, They were for the differential, although they might be the same, I don't know. I got them from Lexus Parts Direct and they are both listed on their website. They weren't any more expensive than those on eBay, although there is a delivery charge. Oddly, the drain plug is cheaper, even though it includes a magnet! https://www.lexuspartsdirect.co.uk/parts/lexus-ls/lexus-ls-phase-ii-1995-2000/lexus-ls-2-brakes-transmission/lexus-phase-2-rear-differential-drain-plug/ https://www.lexuspartsdirect.co.uk/parts/lexus-ls/lexus-ls-phase-ii-1995-2000/lexus-ls-2-brakes-transmission/lexus-phase-2-rear-differential-fill-plug/ I must say I find Daniel Walker at Lexus Part Direct, who are based in Swindon, extremely helpful. His email address is daniel.walker@fish-bros.co.uk.

Cheers John, I wouldn't entertain a Mercedes hybrid though, as you probably know, I do tend to like my big petrol engined things, hence all the AMGs. 😉 I'm not really doing the miles any more so will probably keep hold of this RX for a bit longer, at least another 12 months anyway. I've only put around 1,000 miles on the current Mercedes since I bought it in October due to a combination of illness and, once I started to recover, this lockdown thing so in reality under 1,500 miles in 8 months or so with both cars. I'll keep popping in here as it seems a lot more chilled than some of the forums which I currently visit. I certainly have the time at the moment...

Is your insurance policy currently on your old car? How about contacting them and finding out what the cost would be to change the vehicle? EDIT: I misread, I just cancelled my parent's policy (sold car) and they pay annually. The insurance company refunded the remaining amount, and did not charge a cancellation fee.

You could buy a clamp that's long enough to stretch from the wheel spoke to the back of the caliper! Align the wheel correctly and you're fine as long as the caliper can be observed clearly.

I did mine on level ground with the parking brake off, box in park. Even loosening the wheel nuts didn't move the car. If you apply the parking brake out won't make any difference, the caliper will still move for the check.

You’re very brave parking in a supermarket car park, even more so next to the trolley store. 😀

Typical. I came home in the Saab. If you don't get an answer in the meantime I'll measure up over the weekend.

Dear @wharfhouse Thanks for the great write up. Top of my list of things to do, once I can.

There is a lot written or Youtube'd about the e-cvt in the IS 300h - much of it is a) based on misunderstanding or b) expecting the car to "behave" like a conventional transmission or c) wanting to drive it like a racing car all the time (mainly motoring journalists...). The e-cvt is different - no doubt about that. The only way you will know if it is for you is to test drive one - and not for a few minutes but at least a day. Before I bought my IS 300h I had read/viewed all the same stuff as you are probably doing now. I came from mainly driving BMWs - top end (straight six engine and automatic) 5 and 3 series - the "drivers car" - or so it is claimed. I was looking for something a bit "different" (as I was getting bored of BMWs) and decided to test drive the IS 300h. I had one from the dealer for a day and did a good range of roads using my normal driving habits (normal driving is the key as you are looking at how it works for you in day-to-day life and not how it might work for some with different needs). Personally I was very impressed and after a day just could not understand how so much tosh could be written/broadcast about the car and I purchased a used 2014 model the next day from the Lexus dealer (it was 2 years old at the time with 40k miles on it). I haven't looked back since and have done another 45k miles in it and would purchase another IS 300h without hesitation. It actually takes longer than a day to really appreciate the e-cvt in every day driving which is why so many of the "test drive" articles fall apart compared with real life long-term experience. So, moral of the story - get a good test drive in one - I think the majority who own one "get" the e-cvt and it's advantages - for others it isn't the right car - there are plenty of other marques out there - something for everyone - so choose / test carefully and you won't have buyers remorse...

Gave them a ring. Very good service and high level of cover but 33% higher quote.

Ian, at least the sun has mostly been shining with the driest April on record...so your top down runs out should have been pleasant right? #jealous I normally fill up every 10 days/2 weeks but my last fill up was 2 months ago! #ka-ching

My bonnet will only close if I slam it. If it is caught on the hand release clip it will bounce open all day long

Why don't you phone Adrian Flux for some info, I know you speak highly of them!🤭😇

Many years ago I reversed a lorry into a new Jag, so I know just how it feels! I was greeting with (from a very posh man) "a Jaguar is a very expensive car to repair". Never mind my lorry I thought!

OK sorted. Had the same issue with my wife's Mini two days after my original post. My son (19), kindly topped up the screen wash in both cars as he was topping up his own. He admitted that he may not have slammed the bonnets down hard enough for them to lock properly, 'for fear of damaging them'. 🙂 No problem since.

Hey dude, the car has been DA polished using meguiars ultimate compound, then meguiars ultimate polish, then cleaned with meguiars ultimate quik detailer before two coats of collinite Marque d'elegance and a final coat of Dodo Juice light fantastic with 24 hours to cure between coats and a wipe down with quik detailer before each new application. The pics have had the brightness turned down and structure turned up by about 10% each, that's it 😎 You can go far crazier with the filters if you want..... Exhibit A And Exhibit B Gotta have a good shine to get the reflections though 😎😎

Cartell says it's a Luxury, and DVLA says first registered Sept 2014 so similar to what I have. Most of the Luxury models I've seen have the Design pack with undertrays front and rear. Mine doesn't, which gives it an odd look from some angles. MoT site says it'd done 54k at its last MoT, going up by about the typical 10-12k a year. It'll be close to 60k now, if not already passed it, so you'll want to see that the expensive 6yr/60,000 miles service has been done including changing of the spark plugs. If the dealer has changed tyres for the sale then in my experience they'll fit Dunlop or Bridgestone. It'd be nice to see it with a set of Michelin CrossClimates or similar all-seasons. I can't do much more than look at mine at the moment, and give it the odd run up and down the track - I look forward to doing some decent drives in it one day.

Hi Steve - yes they help a great deal. Certainly help me contemplate leaving Car when I can leave home again As I stated earlier I am a complete duffer mechanical / diy wise and being under my car I see exactly that with the TPF (or GPF) only accessible at one end with the other end mostly inside below the engine. I was led to believe that there were 2 "Cats" and this drawing seems to disprove that. I know you were reprimanded in your op for using the word "petrified" but I can relate to that. My NX is 16 days old and I was worried too so (I bet I will get flack for this but I dont care) I am going to have stickers made stating "CAT inaccessible / Vehicle fitted with Tilt Alarm" and fit them inside each rear Door window. Just need to hope the low lifes can read Thanks again for all the help

Overpriced compared to who? Is there another high street retailer with a similar range of products at lower prices or are you comparing them to amazon and ebay? Companies with a physical high street presence obviously can't compete with the likes of amazon on price alone. Debenhams just went into administration today, it's likely only a matter of time before amazon destroys halfords too. I don't have a lot of faith in our government implementing policy changes to resolve this, although they do sometimes witter on about it in the commons. Halfords is damn handy when you need something quickly, it'll be a real shame if it goes away. I think it's worth paying the small premium to buy from them for this reason alone.

The car is now 10 years old so for the cost involved I would go ahead and replace it now.

It's worth remembering that gearbox contamination is not a certainty, and its not the most common problem. I would simply do it as a precaution and peace of mind, which is what I did. I paid £85 (or there abouts) from an eBay company but I can't remember which one.

Today I was the idiot you sometimes come across in traffic.... Excited for my is300h's first service since I purchased it a month ago, I set off for an hours drive to the closest Lexus center. Once there I realised the parking space just outside would be too narrow so I started backing out again. Check rear camera - clear. Check crossing traffic to the left - clear. Rolled off and I was looking back again through the rear there was a sudden thud. I'd managed to plant my IS in a new CT200h..... Both passenger doors crumpled on the CT. My IS got off easier, the dent came out and there's just some scuffing to take of.... But man I feel like such a complete and utter tool for causing this. 😟 /vent complete